How digital printing improves precision, logistics, and IP protection

When does it make sense to shift from screen printing to digital printing?  

For those of you considering a switch from screen printing to digital printing (for one or more products), we have laid out some differentiators that could help you decide.  

Differentiator: Technology  

Screen printing dates back to 221 AD, when Chinese artists used it to transfer designs onto fabric. By 1900, its artistic value had reached the West, and by 1960, screen printing had become  the go-to printing technology for decals, labels, printed electronics, and more.

Digital printing, one the other hand, came onto the scene in 1989. As the technology advanced, so did the range of commercial and industrial applications. If you are seeking ways to improve quality, or if you are interested in how a printing technique can support logistics and safeguard intellectual property, it might be the right time for you to consider digital printing.   

Differentiator: Precision

If you could reduce a process—any process—from five steps to one step, would you do it?   

Likely, you responded with a resounding “yes.”   

Whenever one process is layered upon another, the risks of human error, equipment malfunction, and other quality disruptors are introduced.  

Screen printing typically requires multiple steps, depending on the complexity of your product. For example, a five-color decal requires five separate printing runs. This start-and-stop method of printing can jeopardize the precision of a single product and create variance among different product batches.   

Digital printing is a single-step process.   

In the case above, screen printing required five separate processes. With digital printing, the five colors are laid simultaneously onto the substrate, without variance in color nuance, saturation, opacity, or other printing features.  

A digital file leaves no room for variance.  

With digital printing, your design is delivered directly to the printer via a digital file. The lack of human or mechanical design manipulation guarantees an exactness unattainable by any other method of design transfer.   

These two factors—a digital file and a single-step printing process—ensure that your product will be precise and consistent, whether you are printing 10 or 10,000 products.  

Digital printing enhances legibility.  

Legibility is an important aspect of print quality. It becomes exceptionally crucial when you need to print a significant amount of information on a label—perhaps for safety or compliance reasons. Screen printing often falls short in this area, because it is common for a screen’s mesh holes to clog. Digital printing, on the other hand, guarantees a higher resolution and greater legibility.   

Differentiator: Tracking  

So many factors have compounded the commercial and industrial headache of logistics: global trade, supply chain backlogs, inventory storage, employee shortages, and more.  

Digital printing obviously cannot end any of these problems, but what it can do is give you the power of real-time tracking as your products move through production, inventory, transport, and delivery. To implement tracking, you can assign and print a unique “serial number” for each product unit. For your convenience, you can use any variable data that is most important to you: place of origin, batch number, item number, etc.   

Differentiator: Security  

The trade of counterfeited and pirated goods now stands between 3-4%* of global trade, a figure that adds up to more than $500 billion of seized counterfeit products each year. (oecd.org)   

No industry is exempt from fraud, including yours.   

 One method of counterfeiting prevention is to embed security codes during the digital printing process. These codes authenticate your product and reduce the risk that your technology will be re-engineered or counterfeited.  

Select the Printing Method That Will Best Serve Your Needs  

Screen printing has served us well for a very long time, and you might be confident that it is still the best method to print your decals, labels, and printed electronics.   

On the other hand, if you are not yet relying on digital printing and you are intrigued by its benefits, please contact The Cubbison Company team. We will be glad to discuss how digital printing might enhance the quality, tracking, and security of your product.  

*The estimate of 3-4% does not reflect the full magnitude of counterfeiting activity, since it doesn’t include products distributed products produced or consumed domestically, or those distributed via the Internet.  

About The Cubbison Company: We provide spec-ready and customized solutions to meet the printed electronics, user-interface, and commercial product identification needs of our clients. Companies in the medical device, defense, transportation, industrial power, oil and gas, aerospace, and manufacturing sectors rely on The Cubbison Company for engineering and design expertise, manufacturing precision, and exceptional service.